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Ameen R, Titus R, Geo JA, Al Shemmari S, Geraghty DE, Pyo CW, Askar M. KIR genotype and haplotype repertoire in Kuwaiti healthy donors, hematopoietic cell transplant recipients and healthy family members. HLA 2023; 102:179-191. [PMID: 36960942 DOI: 10.1111/tan.15029] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/06/2022] [Revised: 03/07/2023] [Accepted: 03/10/2023] [Indexed: 03/25/2023]
Abstract
The gene complex located on chromosome 19q13.4 encodes the Killer-cell Immunoglobulin-like Receptors (KIRs), which exhibit remarkable polymorphism in both gene content and sequences. Further, the repertoire of KIR genes varies within and between populations, creating a diverse pool of KIR genotypes. This study was carried out to characterize KIR genotypes and haplotypes among 379 Arab Kuwaiti individuals including 60 subjects from 20 trio families, 49 hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) recipients and 270 healthy Kuwaiti volunteer HCT donors. KIR Genotyping was performed by a combination of reverse sequence specific oligonucleotide probes (rSSO) and/or Real Time PCR. The frequencies of KIR genes in 270 healthy Kuwaiti volunteer donors were compared to previously reported frequencies in other populations. In addition, we compared the differences in KIR repertoire of patients and healthy donors to investigate the reproducibility of previously reported significant differences between patients with hematological malignancies and healthy donors. The observed frequencies in our cohort volunteer HCT donors was comparable to those reported in neighboring Arab populations. The activating genes KIR2DS1, KIR2DS5 and KIR3DS1 and the inhibitory gene KIR2DL5 were significantly more frequent in patients compared to healthy donors, however, none of the previously reported differences were reproducible in our Kuwaiti cohort. This report is the first description of KIR gene carrier frequency and haplotype characterization in a fairly large cohort of the Kuwaiti population, which may have implications in KIR based HCT donor selection strategies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Reem Ameen
- Department of Medical Laboratory Sciences, Health Sciences Center, Kuwait University, Jabriya, Kuwait
| | - Roshni Titus
- Department of Medical Laboratory Sciences, Health Sciences Center, Kuwait University, Jabriya, Kuwait
| | - Jeethu Anu Geo
- Department of Medical Laboratory Sciences, Health Sciences Center, Kuwait University, Jabriya, Kuwait
| | - Salem Al Shemmari
- Department of Medicine, Health Sciences Center, Kuwait University, Jabriya, Kuwait
| | - Daniel E Geraghty
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Chul-Woo Pyo
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Medhat Askar
- College of Medicine, Qatar University, Doha, Qatar
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2
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Tan LL, Loganathan N, Agarwalla S, Yang C, Yuan W, Zeng J, Wu R, Wang W, Duraiswamy S. Current commercial dPCR platforms: technology and market review. Crit Rev Biotechnol 2022; 43:433-464. [PMID: 35291902 DOI: 10.1080/07388551.2022.2037503] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
Abstract
Digital polymerase chain reaction (dPCR) technology has provided a new technique for molecular diagnostics, with superior advantages, such as higher sensitivity, precision, and specificity over quantitative real-time PCRs (qPCR). Eight companies have offered commercial dPCR instruments: Fluidigm Corporation, Bio-Rad, RainDance Technologies, Life Technologies, Qiagen, JN MedSys Clarity, Optolane, and Stilla Technologies Naica. This paper discusses the working principle of each offered dPCR device and compares the associated: technical aspects, usability, costs, and current applications of each dPCR device. Lastly, up-and-coming dPCR technologies are also presented, as anticipation of how the dPCR device landscape may likely morph in the next few years.
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Affiliation(s)
- Li Ling Tan
- Singapore Institute of Manufacturing Technology, Singapore, Singapore.,Materials Science and Engineering School, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Nitin Loganathan
- Singapore Institute of Manufacturing Technology, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Sushama Agarwalla
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Hyderabad, Hyderabad, India
| | - Chun Yang
- Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering School, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Weiyong Yuan
- Faculty of Materials & Energy, Institute for Clean Energy and Advanced Materials, Southwest University, Chongqing, China.,Chongqing Key Laboratory for Advanced Materials and Technologies of Clean Energies, Chongqing, China
| | - Jasmine Zeng
- Singapore Institute of Manufacturing Technology, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Ruige Wu
- Singapore Institute of Manufacturing Technology, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Wei Wang
- Singapore Institute of Manufacturing Technology, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Suhanya Duraiswamy
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Hyderabad, Hyderabad, India
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3
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Wen T, Zhang X, Lippuner C, Schiff M, Stuber F. Development and Evaluation of a Droplet Digital PCR Assay for 8p23 β-Defensin Cluster Copy Number Determination. Mol Diagn Ther 2021; 25:607-615. [PMID: 34327613 PMCID: PMC8320422 DOI: 10.1007/s40291-021-00546-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 07/04/2021] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
Abstract
Introduction It has been proposed that the copy number (CN) variation (CNV) in β-defensin genes (DEFB) on human chromosome 8p23 determines phenotypic differences in inflammatory diseases. However, no method for accurate and easy DEFB CN quantification is yet available. Objective Droplet digital polymerase chain reaction (ddPCR) is a novel method for CNV quantification and has been used for genes such as CCL4L, CCL3L1, AMY1, and HER2. However, to date, no ddPCR assay has been available for DEFB CN determination. In the present study, we aimed to develop and evaluate such a ddPCR assay. Methods The assay was designed using DEFB4 and RPP30 as the target and the reference gene, respectively. To evaluate the assay, 283 DNA samples with known CNs previously determined using the multiple ligation-dependent probe amplification (MLPA) method, the current gold standard, were used as standards. To discover the optimal DNA template amount, we tested 80 to 2.5 ng DNA by a serial of one to two dilutions of eight samples. To evaluate the reproducibility of the assay, 31 samples were repeated to calculate the intra- and inter-assay variations. To further validate the reliability of the assay, the CNs of all 283 samples were determined using ddPCR. To compare results with those using quantitative PCR (qPCR), DEFB CNs for 48 samples were determined using qPCR with the same primers and probes. Results In a one-dimensional plot, the positive and negative droplets were clearly separated in both DEFB4 and RPP30 detection channels. In a two-dimensional plot, four populations of droplets were observed. The 20 ng template DNA proved optimal, with either high (80 ng) or low (10, 5, 2.5 ng) template input leading to ambiguous or inaccurate results. For the 31 standard samples, DEFB CNs were accurately determined with small intra- and inter-assay variations (coefficient of variation < 0.04 for both). In the validation cohort, ddPCR provided the correct CN for all 283 samples with high confidence. qPCR measurements for the 48 samples produced noisy data with high uncertainty and low accuracy. Conclusions ddPCR is an accurate, reproducible, easy-to-use, cheap, high-throughput method for DEFB CN determination. ddPCR could be applied to DEFB CN quantification in large-scale case–control studies. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s40291-021-00546-2.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tingting Wen
- Department of Anesthesiology, The First Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Xianghong Zhang
- Department of Cardiac Intensive Care Unit, The Children's Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, National Clinical Research Center for Child Heath, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China.
| | - Christoph Lippuner
- Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine, Bern University Hospital, Inselspital, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Marcel Schiff
- Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine, Bern University Hospital, Inselspital, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Frank Stuber
- Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine, Bern University Hospital, Inselspital, Bern, Switzerland
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Duygu B, Olieslagers TI, Groeneweg M, Voorter CEM, Wieten L. HLA Class I Molecules as Immune Checkpoints for NK Cell Alloreactivity and Anti-Viral Immunity in Kidney Transplantation. Front Immunol 2021; 12:680480. [PMID: 34295330 PMCID: PMC8290519 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2021.680480] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/14/2021] [Accepted: 06/14/2021] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Natural killer (NK) cells are innate lymphocytes that can kill diseased- or virally-infected cells, mediate antibody dependent cytotoxicity and produce type I immune-associated cytokines upon activation. NK cells also contribute to the allo-immune response upon kidney transplantation either by promoting allograft rejection through lysis of cells of the transplanted organ or by promoting alloreactive T cells. In addition, they protect against viral infections upon transplantation which may be especially relevant in patients receiving high dose immune suppression. NK cell activation is tightly regulated through the integrated balance of signaling via inhibitory- and activating receptors. HLA class I molecules are critical regulators of NK cell activation through the interaction with inhibitory- as well as activating NK cell receptors, hence, HLA molecules act as critical immune checkpoints for NK cells. In the current review, we evaluate how NK cell alloreactivity and anti-viral immunity are regulated by NK cell receptors belonging to the KIR family and interacting with classical HLA class I molecules, or by NKG2A/C and LILRB1/KIR2DL4 engaging non-classical HLA-E or -G. In addition, we provide an overview of the methods to determine genetic variation in these receptors and their HLA ligands.
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Affiliation(s)
- Burcu Duygu
- Department of Transplantation Immunology, Maastricht University Medical Center, Maastricht, Netherlands.,GROW, School for Oncology and Developmental Biology, Maastricht University, Maastricht, Netherlands
| | - Timo I Olieslagers
- Department of Transplantation Immunology, Maastricht University Medical Center, Maastricht, Netherlands.,GROW, School for Oncology and Developmental Biology, Maastricht University, Maastricht, Netherlands
| | - Mathijs Groeneweg
- Department of Transplantation Immunology, Maastricht University Medical Center, Maastricht, Netherlands.,GROW, School for Oncology and Developmental Biology, Maastricht University, Maastricht, Netherlands
| | - Christina E M Voorter
- Department of Transplantation Immunology, Maastricht University Medical Center, Maastricht, Netherlands.,GROW, School for Oncology and Developmental Biology, Maastricht University, Maastricht, Netherlands
| | - Lotte Wieten
- Department of Transplantation Immunology, Maastricht University Medical Center, Maastricht, Netherlands.,GROW, School for Oncology and Developmental Biology, Maastricht University, Maastricht, Netherlands
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5
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Boone EC, Wang WY, Gaedigk R, Cherner M, Bérard A, Leeder JS, Miller NA, Gaedigk A. Long-Distance Phasing of a Tentative "Enhancer" Single-Nucleotide Polymorphism With CYP2D6 Star Allele Definitions. Front Pharmacol 2020; 11:486. [PMID: 32457600 PMCID: PMC7226225 DOI: 10.3389/fphar.2020.00486] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/29/2020] [Accepted: 03/27/2020] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The CYP2D6 gene locus has been extensively studied over decades, yet a portion of variability in CYP2D6 activity cannot be explained by known sequence variations within the gene, copy number variation, or structural rearrangements. It was proposed that rs5758550, located 116 kb downstream of the CYP2D6 gene locus, increases gene expression and thus contributes to variability in CYP2D6 activity. This finding has, however, not been validated. The purpose of the study was to address a major technological barrier, i.e., experimentally linking rs5758550, also referred to as the "enhancer" single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP), to CYP2D6 haplotypes >100 kb away. To overcome this challenge is essential to ultimately determine the contribution of the "enhancer" SNP to interindividual variability in CYP2D6 activity. METHODS A large ethnically mixed population sample (n=3,162) was computationally phased to determine linkage between the "enhancer" SNP and CYP2D6 haplotypes (or star alleles). To experimentally validate predicted linkages, DropPhase2D6, a digital droplet PCR (ddPCR)-based method was developed. 10X Genomics Linked-Reads were utilized as a proof of concept. RESULTS Phasing predicted that the "enhancer" SNP can occur on numerous CYP2D6 haplotypes including CYP2D6*1, *2, *5, and *41 and suggested that linkage is incomplete, i.e., a portion of these alleles do not have the "enhancer" SNP. Phasing also revealed differences among the European and African ancestry data sets regarding the proportion of alleles with and without the "enhancer" SNP. DropPhase2D6 was utilized to confirm or refute the predicted "enhancer" SNP location for individual samples, e.g., of n=3 samples genotyped as *1/*41, rs5758550 was on the *41 allele of two samples and on the *1 allele of one sample. Our findings highlight that the location of the "enhancer" SNP must not be assigned by "default." Furthermore, linkage between the "enhancer" SNP and CYP2D6 star allele haplotypes was confirmed with 10X Genomics technology. CONCLUSIONS Since the "enhancer" SNP can be present on a portion of normal, decreased, or no function alleles, the phase of the "enhancer" SNP must be considered when investigating the impact of the "enhancer" SNP on CYP2D6 activity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erin C. Boone
- Division of Clinical Pharmacology, Toxicology and Therapeutic Innovation, Children's Mercy Kansas City, Kansas City, MO, United States
| | - Wendy Y. Wang
- Division of Clinical Pharmacology, Toxicology and Therapeutic Innovation, Children's Mercy Kansas City, Kansas City, MO, United States
| | - Roger Gaedigk
- Division of Clinical Pharmacology, Toxicology and Therapeutic Innovation, Children's Mercy Kansas City, Kansas City, MO, United States
- School of Medicine, University of Missouri-Kansas City, Kansas City, MO, United States
| | - Mariana Cherner
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, United States
| | - Anick Bérard
- Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Montreal, Montreal, QC, Canada
- Research Center, CHU Sainte-Justine, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | - J. Steven Leeder
- Division of Clinical Pharmacology, Toxicology and Therapeutic Innovation, Children's Mercy Kansas City, Kansas City, MO, United States
- School of Medicine, University of Missouri-Kansas City, Kansas City, MO, United States
| | - Neil A. Miller
- School of Medicine, University of Missouri-Kansas City, Kansas City, MO, United States
- Center for Pediatric Genomic Medicine, Children's Mercy Kansas City, Kansas City, MO, United States
| | - Andrea Gaedigk
- Division of Clinical Pharmacology, Toxicology and Therapeutic Innovation, Children's Mercy Kansas City, Kansas City, MO, United States
- School of Medicine, University of Missouri-Kansas City, Kansas City, MO, United States
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6
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Cisneros E, Moraru M, Gómez-Lozano N, Muntasell A, López-Botet M, Vilches C. Haplotype-Based Analysis of KIR-Gene Profiles in a South European Population-Distribution of Standard and Variant Haplotypes, and Identification of Novel Recombinant Structures. Front Immunol 2020; 11:440. [PMID: 32256494 PMCID: PMC7089957 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2020.00440] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/19/2020] [Accepted: 02/26/2020] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Inhibitory Killer-cell Immunoglobulin-like Receptors (KIR) specific for HLA class I molecules enable human natural killer cells to monitor altered antigen presentation in pathogen-infected and tumor cells. KIR genes display extensive copy-number variation and allelic polymorphism. They organize in a series of variable arrangements, designated KIR haplotypes, which derive from duplications of ancestral genes and sequence diversification through point mutation and unequal crossing-over events. Genomic studies have established the organization of multiple KIR haplotypes—many of them are fixed in most human populations, whereas variants of those have less certain distributions. Whilst KIR-gene diversity of many populations and ethnicities has been explored superficially (frequencies of individual genes and presence/absence profiles), less abundant are in-depth analyses of how such diversity emerges from KIR-haplotype structures. We characterize here the genetic diversity of KIR in a sample of 414 Spanish individuals. Using a parsimonious approach, we manage to explain all 38 observed KIR-gene profiles by homo- or heterozygous combinations of six fixed centromeric and telomeric motifs; of six variant gene arrangements characterized previously by us and others; and of two novel haplotypes never detected before in Caucasoids. Associated to the latter haplotypes, we also identified the novel transcribed KIR2DL5B*0020202 allele, and a chimeric KIR2DS2/KIR2DL3 gene (designated KIR2DL3*033) that challenges current criteria for classification and nomenclature of KIR genes and haplotypes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elisa Cisneros
- Immunogenetics and Histocompatibility, Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria Puerta de Hierro Segovia de Arana, Madrid, Spain
| | - Manuela Moraru
- Immunogenetics and Histocompatibility, Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria Puerta de Hierro Segovia de Arana, Madrid, Spain
| | - Natalia Gómez-Lozano
- Immunogenetics and Histocompatibility, Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria Puerta de Hierro Segovia de Arana, Madrid, Spain
| | - Aura Muntasell
- Hospital del Mar Medical Research Institute (IMIM), Barcelona, Spain
| | - Miguel López-Botet
- Hospital del Mar Medical Research Institute (IMIM), Barcelona, Spain.,Department of Experimental and Health Sciences, University Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Carlos Vilches
- Immunogenetics and Histocompatibility, Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria Puerta de Hierro Segovia de Arana, Madrid, Spain
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7
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Pickering H, Palmer CD, Houghton J, Makalo P, Joof H, Derrick T, Goncalves A, Mabey DCW, Bailey RL, Burton MJ, Roberts CH, Burr SE, Holland MJ. Conjunctival Microbiome-Host Responses Are Associated With Impaired Epithelial Cell Health in Both Early and Late Stages of Trachoma. Front Cell Infect Microbiol 2019; 9:297. [PMID: 31552195 PMCID: PMC6736612 DOI: 10.3389/fcimb.2019.00297] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/02/2019] [Accepted: 07/31/2019] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Background: Trachoma, a neglected tropical disease, is the leading infectious cause of blindness and visual impairment worldwide. Host responses to ocular chlamydial infection resulting in chronic inflammation and expansion of non-chlamydial bacteria are hypothesized risk factors for development of active trachoma and conjunctival scarring. Methods: Ocular swabs from trachoma endemic populations in The Gambia were selected from archived samples for 16S sequencing and host conjunctival gene expression. We recruited children with active trachoma and adults with conjunctival scarring, alongside corresponding matched controls. Findings: In children, active trachoma was not associated with significant changes in the ocular microbiome. Haemophilus enrichment was associated with antimicrobial responses but not linked to active trachoma. Adults with scarring trachoma had a reduced ocular bacterial diversity compared to controls, with increased relative abundance of Corynebacterium. Increased abundance of Corynebacterium in scarring disease was associated with innate immune responses to the microbiota, dominated by altered mucin expression and increased matrix adhesion. Interpretation: In the absence of current Chlamydia trachomatis infection, changes in the ocular microbiome associate with differential expression of antimicrobial and inflammatory genes that impair epithelial cell health. In scarring trachoma, expansion of non-pathogenic bacteria such as Corynebacterium and innate responses are coincident, warranting further investigation of this relationship. Comparisons between active and scarring trachoma supported the relative absence of type-2 interferon responses in scarring, whilst highlighting a common suppression of re-epithelialization with altered epithelial and bacterial adhesion, likely contributing to development of scarring pathology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Harry Pickering
- Clinical Research Department, Faculty of Infectious and Tropical Diseases, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom
| | - Christine D Palmer
- Clinical Research Department, Faculty of Infectious and Tropical Diseases, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom
| | - Joanna Houghton
- Clinical Research Department, Faculty of Infectious and Tropical Diseases, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom
| | - Pateh Makalo
- Disease Control and Elimination Theme, MRC Unit the Gambia at LSHTM, Banjul, Gambia
| | - Hassan Joof
- Disease Control and Elimination Theme, MRC Unit the Gambia at LSHTM, Banjul, Gambia
| | - Tamsyn Derrick
- Clinical Research Department, Faculty of Infectious and Tropical Diseases, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom
| | - Adriana Goncalves
- Clinical Research Department, Faculty of Infectious and Tropical Diseases, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom
| | - David C W Mabey
- Clinical Research Department, Faculty of Infectious and Tropical Diseases, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom
| | - Robin L Bailey
- Clinical Research Department, Faculty of Infectious and Tropical Diseases, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom
| | - Matthew J Burton
- Clinical Research Department, Faculty of Infectious and Tropical Diseases, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom
| | - Chrissy H Roberts
- Clinical Research Department, Faculty of Infectious and Tropical Diseases, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom
| | - Sarah E Burr
- Clinical Research Department, Faculty of Infectious and Tropical Diseases, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom.,Disease Control and Elimination Theme, MRC Unit the Gambia at LSHTM, Banjul, Gambia
| | - Martin J Holland
- Clinical Research Department, Faculty of Infectious and Tropical Diseases, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom.,Disease Control and Elimination Theme, MRC Unit the Gambia at LSHTM, Banjul, Gambia
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8
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Pende D, Falco M, Vitale M, Cantoni C, Vitale C, Munari E, Bertaina A, Moretta F, Del Zotto G, Pietra G, Mingari MC, Locatelli F, Moretta L. Killer Ig-Like Receptors (KIRs): Their Role in NK Cell Modulation and Developments Leading to Their Clinical Exploitation. Front Immunol 2019; 10:1179. [PMID: 31231370 PMCID: PMC6558367 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2019.01179] [Citation(s) in RCA: 226] [Impact Index Per Article: 45.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/24/2019] [Accepted: 05/09/2019] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Natural killer (NK) cells contribute to the first line of defense against viruses and to the control of tumor growth and metastasis spread. The discovery of HLA class I specific inhibitory receptors, primarily of killer Ig-like receptors (KIRs), and of activating receptors has been fundamental to unravel NK cell function and the molecular mechanisms of tumor cell killing. Stemmed from the seminal discoveries in early '90s, in which Alessandro Moretta was the major actor, an extraordinary amount of research on KIR specificity, genetics, polymorphism, and repertoire has followed. These basic notions on NK cells and their receptors have been successfully translated to clinical applications, primarily to the haploidentical hematopoietic stem cell transplantation to cure otherwise fatal leukemia in patients with no HLA compatible donors. The finding that NK cells may express the PD-1 inhibitory checkpoint, particularly in cancer patients, may allow understanding how anti-PD-1 therapy could function also in case of HLA class Ineg tumors, usually susceptible to NK-mediated killing. This, together with the synergy of therapeutic anti-checkpoint monoclonal antibodies, including those directed against NKG2A or KIRs, emerging in recent or ongoing studies, opened new solid perspectives in cancer therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniela Pende
- Laboratory of Immunology, Department of Integrated Oncological Therapies, IRCCS Ospedale Policlinico San Martino, Genoa, Italy
| | - Michela Falco
- Laboratory of Clinical and Experimental Immunology, Integrated Department of Services and Laboratories, IRCCS Istituto G. Gaslini, Genoa, Italy
| | - Massimo Vitale
- Laboratory of Immunology, Department of Integrated Oncological Therapies, IRCCS Ospedale Policlinico San Martino, Genoa, Italy
| | - Claudia Cantoni
- Laboratory of Clinical and Experimental Immunology, Integrated Department of Services and Laboratories, IRCCS Istituto G. Gaslini, Genoa, Italy.,Department of Experimental Medicine (DIMES), Center of Excellence for Biomedical Research, Università di Genova, Genoa, Italy
| | - Chiara Vitale
- Laboratory of Immunology, Department of Integrated Oncological Therapies, IRCCS Ospedale Policlinico San Martino, Genoa, Italy.,Department of Experimental Medicine (DIMES), Università di Genova, Genoa, Italy
| | - Enrico Munari
- Department of Pathology, IRCCS Sacro Cuore Don Calabria Hospital, Negrar, Italy
| | - Alice Bertaina
- Division of Stem Cell Transplantation and Regenerative Medicine, Department of Pediatrics Stanford School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, United States
| | - Francesca Moretta
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, IRCCS Sacro Cuore Don Calabria Hospital, Negrar, Italy
| | - Genny Del Zotto
- Core Facilities, Integrated Department of Services and Laboratories, IRCCS Istituto G. Gaslini, Genoa, Italy
| | - Gabriella Pietra
- Laboratory of Immunology, Department of Integrated Oncological Therapies, IRCCS Ospedale Policlinico San Martino, Genoa, Italy.,Department of Experimental Medicine (DIMES), Università di Genova, Genoa, Italy
| | - Maria Cristina Mingari
- Laboratory of Immunology, Department of Integrated Oncological Therapies, IRCCS Ospedale Policlinico San Martino, Genoa, Italy.,Department of Experimental Medicine (DIMES), Center of Excellence for Biomedical Research, Università di Genova, Genoa, Italy
| | - Franco Locatelli
- Department of Oncohematology and Cell and Gene Therapy, IRCCS Ospedale Pediatrico Bambino Gesù, Rome, Italy
| | - Lorenzo Moretta
- Laboratory of Tumor Immunology, Department of Immunology, IRCCS Ospedale Pediatrico Bambino Gesù, Rome, Italy
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9
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Lunde TM, Roberts AP, Al-Haroni M. Determination of copy number and circularization ratio of Tn 916-Tn 1545 family of conjugative transposons in oral streptococci by droplet digital PCR. J Oral Microbiol 2018; 11:1552060. [PMID: 30598735 PMCID: PMC6292373 DOI: 10.1080/20002297.2018.1552060] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/22/2018] [Revised: 11/12/2018] [Accepted: 11/19/2018] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Background: Tn916 and Tn1545 are paradigms of a large family of related, broad host range, conjugative transposons that are widely distributed in bacteria and contribute to the spread of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs). Variation in the copy number (CN) of Tn916-Tn1545 elements and the circularization ratio (CR) may play an important role in propagation of ARGs carried by these elements. Objectives and Design: In this study, the CN and CR of Tn916-Tn1545 elements in oral streptococci were determined using droplet digital PCR (ddPCR). In addition, we investigated the influence of tetracycline on the CR of Tn916-Tn1545 elements. Results: The ddPCR assay designed in this study is a reliable way to rapidly determine CN and CR of Tn916-Tn1545 elements. Conclusions: Our data also suggest that Tn916-Tn1545 elements are generally stable without selective pressure in the clinical oral Streptococcus strains investigated in this study.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tracy Munthali Lunde
- Department of Clinical Dentistry, Faculty of Health Sciences, UiT the Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway
| | - Adam P Roberts
- Department of Parasitology, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, Liverpool, UK.,Centre for Drugs and Diagnostics, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, Liverpool, UK
| | - Mohammed Al-Haroni
- Department of Clinical Dentistry, Faculty of Health Sciences, UiT the Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway
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10
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Wagner I, Schefzyk D, Pruschke J, Schöfl G, Schöne B, Gruber N, Lang K, Hofmann J, Gnahm C, Heyn B, Marin WM, Dandekar R, Hollenbach JA, Schetelig J, Pingel J, Norman PJ, Sauter J, Schmidt AH, Lange V. Allele-Level KIR Genotyping of More Than a Million Samples: Workflow, Algorithm, and Observations. Front Immunol 2018; 9:2843. [PMID: 30564239 PMCID: PMC6288436 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2018.02843] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/23/2018] [Accepted: 11/19/2018] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The killer-cell immunoglobulin-like receptor (KIR) genes regulate natural killer cell activity, influencing predisposition to immune mediated disease, and affecting hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) outcome. Owing to the complexity of the KIR locus, with extensive gene copy number variation (CNV) and allelic diversity, high-resolution characterization of KIR has so far been applied only to relatively small cohorts. Here, we present a comprehensive high-throughput KIR genotyping approach based on next generation sequencing. Through PCR amplification of specific exons, our approach delivers both copy numbers of the individual genes and allelic information for every KIR gene. Ten-fold replicate analysis of a set of 190 samples revealed a precision of 99.9%. Genotyping of an independent set of 360 samples resulted in an accuracy of more than 99% taking into account consistent copy number prediction. We applied the workflow to genotype 1.8 million stem cell donor registry samples. We report on the observed KIR allele diversity and relative abundance of alleles based on a subset of more than 300,000 samples. Furthermore, we identified more than 2,000 previously unreported KIR variants repeatedly in independent samples, underscoring the large diversity of the KIR region that awaits discovery. This cost-efficient high-resolution KIR genotyping approach is now applied to samples of volunteers registering as potential donors for HSCT. This will facilitate the utilization of KIR as additional selection criterion to improve unrelated donor stem cell transplantation outcome. In addition, the approach may serve studies requiring high-resolution KIR genotyping, like population genetics and disease association studies.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Wesley M. Marin
- San Francisco School of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, United States
| | - Ravi Dandekar
- San Francisco School of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, United States
| | - Jill A. Hollenbach
- San Francisco School of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, United States
| | - Johannes Schetelig
- DKMS, Tübingen, Germany
- Department of Internal Medicine I, University Hospital Carl Gustav Carus at the Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany
| | | | - Paul J. Norman
- Division of Biomedical Informatics and Personalized Medicine, and Department of Immunology, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical, Aurora, CO, United States
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11
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Quan PL, Sauzade M, Brouzes E. dPCR: A Technology Review. SENSORS (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2018; 18:E1271. [PMID: 29677144 PMCID: PMC5948698 DOI: 10.3390/s18041271] [Citation(s) in RCA: 308] [Impact Index Per Article: 51.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/10/2018] [Revised: 04/13/2018] [Accepted: 04/15/2018] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
Digital Polymerase Chain Reaction (dPCR) is a novel method for the absolute quantification of target nucleic acids. Quantification by dPCR hinges on the fact that the random distribution of molecules in many partitions follows a Poisson distribution. Each partition acts as an individual PCR microreactor and partitions containing amplified target sequences are detected by fluorescence. The proportion of PCR-positive partitions suffices to determine the concentration of the target sequence without a need for calibration. Advances in microfluidics enabled the current revolution of digital quantification by providing efficient partitioning methods. In this review, we compare the fundamental concepts behind the quantification of nucleic acids by dPCR and quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR). We detail the underlying statistics of dPCR and explain how it defines its precision and performance metrics. We review the different microfluidic digital PCR formats, present their underlying physical principles, and analyze the technological evolution of dPCR platforms. We present the novel multiplexing strategies enabled by dPCR and examine how isothermal amplification could be an alternative to PCR in digital assays. Finally, we determine whether the theoretical advantages of dPCR over qPCR hold true by perusing studies that directly compare assays implemented with both methods.
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Affiliation(s)
- Phenix-Lan Quan
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794, USA.
| | - Martin Sauzade
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794, USA.
| | - Eric Brouzes
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794, USA.
- Laufer Center for Physical and Quantitative Biology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794, USA.
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12
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Normalization of cell associated antiretroviral drug concentrations with a novel RPP30 droplet digital PCR assay. Sci Rep 2018; 8:3626. [PMID: 29483619 PMCID: PMC5827666 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-018-21882-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/03/2017] [Accepted: 02/13/2018] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Quantification of antiretroviral (ARV) drug concentrations in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) and tissue isolated mononuclear cells (TIMCs) from lymph node (LNMC) and rectum (RMC) is an important measure of bio-distribution. Normalization of drug concentrations is critical to represent tissue drug concentrations and to analyze both intra-individual and inter-individual variability in drug distribution. However, a molecular method to normalize intracellular drug concentrations in PBMCs and TIMCs methanol extracts is currently unavailable. In this study, a novel droplet digital PCR (ddPCR) assay was designed to amplify RPP30 gene sequence conserved in human and non-human primates (NHP). Genomic DNA (gDNA) isolated from 70 percent methanol embedded PBMCs and TIMCs was used as ddPCR template to quantitate precise RPP30 copies to derive cell counts. The novel molecular method quantitated RPP30 copies in human and rhesus macaque gDNA templates with greater accuracy and precision than qPCR. RPP30 ddPCR derived cell counts are strongly correlated with automated cytometer based cell counts in PBMC (R = 0.90, p = 0.001 and n = 20); LNMC (R = 0.85 p = 0.0001 and n = 22) and RMC (R = 0.92, p = 0.0001 and n = 20) and achieved comparable normalized drug concentrations. Therefore, the RPP30 ddPCR assay is an important normalization method in drug bio-distribution and pharmacokinetic studies in humans and NHPs.
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13
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Zhu Q, Xu Y, Qiu L, Ma C, Yu B, Song Q, Jin W, Jin Q, Liu J, Mu Y. A scalable self-priming fractal branching microchannel net chip for digital PCR. LAB ON A CHIP 2017; 17:1655-1665. [PMID: 28418438 DOI: 10.1039/c7lc00267j] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/26/2023]
Abstract
As an absolute quantification method at the single-molecule level, digital PCR has been widely used in many bioresearch fields, such as next generation sequencing, single cell analysis, gene editing detection and so on. However, existing digital PCR methods still have some disadvantages, including high cost, sample loss, and complicated operation. In this work, we develop an exquisite scalable self-priming fractal branching microchannel net digital PCR chip. This chip with a special design inspired by natural fractal-tree systems has an even distribution and 100% compartmentalization of the sample without any sample loss, which is not available in existing chip-based digital PCR methods. A special 10 nm nano-waterproof layer was created to prevent the solution from evaporating. A vacuum pre-packaging method called self-priming reagent introduction is used to passively drive the reagent flow into the microchannel nets, so that this chip can realize sequential reagent loading and isolation within a couple of minutes, which is very suitable for point-of-care detection. When the number of positive microwells stays in the range of 100 to 4000, the relative uncertainty is below 5%, which means that one panel can detect an average of 101 to 15 374 molecules by the Poisson distribution. This chip is proved to have an excellent ability for single molecule detection and quantification of low expression of hHF-MSC stem cell markers. Due to its potential for high throughput, high density, low cost, lack of sample and reagent loss, self-priming even compartmentalization and simple operation, we envision that this device will significantly expand and extend the application range of digital PCR involving rare samples, liquid biopsy detection and point-of-care detection with higher sensitivity and accuracy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qiangyuan Zhu
- Research Center for Analytical Instrumentation, Institute of Cyber Systems and Control, State Key Laboratory of Industrial Control Technology, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, Zhejiang, P. R. China.
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14
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Härmälä SK, Butcher R, Roberts CH. Copy Number Variation Analysis by Droplet Digital PCR. Methods Mol Biol 2017; 1654:135-149. [PMID: 28986787 DOI: 10.1007/978-1-4939-7231-9_9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/08/2022]
Abstract
The health impact of many copy number variants in our genome remains still largely to be discovered. Detecting and genotyping this often complex variation presents a technical challenge. Here we describe a 96-well format droplet digital PCR (ddPCR) protocol for genotyping a common copy variant in the human haptoglobin gene. ddPCR allows for high-throughput and accurate quantitation of gene copy numbers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Suvi K Härmälä
- MRC International Nutrition Group, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, UK
| | - Robert Butcher
- Department of Clinical Research, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, UK
| | - Chrissy H Roberts
- Department of Clinical Research, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, UK.
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15
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Béziat V, Hilton HG, Norman PJ, Traherne JA. Deciphering the killer-cell immunoglobulin-like receptor system at super-resolution for natural killer and T-cell biology. Immunology 2016; 150:248-264. [PMID: 27779741 PMCID: PMC5290243 DOI: 10.1111/imm.12684] [Citation(s) in RCA: 43] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/18/2016] [Revised: 10/12/2016] [Accepted: 10/17/2016] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Killer-cell immunoglobulin-like receptors (KIRs) are components of two fundamental biological systems essential for human health and survival. First, they contribute to host immune responses, both innate and adaptive, through their expression by natural killer cells and T cells. Second, KIR play a key role in regulating placentation, and hence reproductive success. Analogous to the diversity of their human leucocyte antigen class I ligands, KIR are extremely polymorphic. In this review, we describe recent developments, fuelled by methodological advances, that are helping to decipher the KIR system in terms of haplotypes, polymorphisms, expression patterns and their ligand interactions. These developments are delivering deeper insight into the relevance of KIR in immune system function, evolution and disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vivien Béziat
- Laboratory of Human Genetics of Infectious Diseases, Necker Branch, INSERM U1163, Paris, France.,Imagine Institute, Paris Descartes University, Paris, France
| | - Hugo G Hilton
- Departments of Structural Biology and Microbiology & Immunology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Paul J Norman
- Departments of Structural Biology and Microbiology & Immunology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
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16
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Linkage assay by digital droplet PCR to assess the freshness of orange juice. Eur Food Res Technol 2016. [DOI: 10.1007/s00217-016-2818-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
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17
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Jiang W, Johnson C, Simecek N, López-Álvarez MR, Di D, Trowsdale J, Traherne JA. qKAT: a high-throughput qPCR method for KIR gene copy number and haplotype determination. Genome Med 2016; 8:99. [PMID: 27686127 PMCID: PMC5041586 DOI: 10.1186/s13073-016-0358-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/04/2016] [Accepted: 09/15/2016] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Killer cell immunoglobulin-like receptors (KIRs), expressed on natural killer cells and T cells, have considerable biomedical relevance playing significant roles in immunity, pregnancy and transplantation. The KIR locus is one of the most complex and polymorphic regions of the human genome. Extensive sequence homology and copy number variation makes KIRs technically laborious and expensive to type. To aid the investigation of KIRs in human disease we developed a high-throughput, multiplex real-time polymerase chain reaction method to determine gene copy number for each KIR locus. We used reference DNA samples to validate the accuracy and a cohort of 1698 individuals to evaluate capability for precise copy number discrimination. The method provides improved information and identifies KIR haplotype alterations that were not previously visible using other approaches.
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Affiliation(s)
- W Jiang
- Cambridge Institute for Medical Research, University of Cambridge, Cambridge Biomedical Campus, Wellcome Trust/MRC Building, Hills Road, Cambridge, CB2 0XY, UK
| | - C Johnson
- Cambridge Institute for Medical Research, University of Cambridge, Cambridge Biomedical Campus, Wellcome Trust/MRC Building, Hills Road, Cambridge, CB2 0XY, UK
| | - N Simecek
- Cambridge Institute for Medical Research, University of Cambridge, Cambridge Biomedical Campus, Wellcome Trust/MRC Building, Hills Road, Cambridge, CB2 0XY, UK
| | - M R López-Álvarez
- Cambridge Institute for Medical Research, University of Cambridge, Cambridge Biomedical Campus, Wellcome Trust/MRC Building, Hills Road, Cambridge, CB2 0XY, UK
| | - D Di
- Cambridge Institute for Medical Research, University of Cambridge, Cambridge Biomedical Campus, Wellcome Trust/MRC Building, Hills Road, Cambridge, CB2 0XY, UK
| | - J Trowsdale
- Immunology Division, Department of Pathology, University of Cambridge, Tennis Court Road, Cambridge, CB2 1QP, UK
| | - J A Traherne
- Immunology Division, Department of Pathology, University of Cambridge, Tennis Court Road, Cambridge, CB2 1QP, UK.
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18
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Trowsdale J, Jones DC, Barrow AD, Traherne JA. Surveillance of cell and tissue perturbation by receptors in the LRC. Immunol Rev 2016; 267:117-36. [PMID: 26284474 DOI: 10.1111/imr.12314] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
The human leukocyte receptor complex (LRC) encompasses several sets of genes with a common evolutionary origin and which form a branch of the immunoglobulin superfamily (IgSF). Comparisons of LRC genes both within and between species calls for a high degree of plasticity. The drive for this unprecedented level of variation is not known, but it relates in part to interaction of several LRC products with polymorphic human leukocyte antigen (HLA) class I molecules. However, the range of other proposed ligands for LRC products indicates a dynamic set of receptors that have adapted to detect target molecules relating to numerous cellular pathways. Several receptors in the complex bind a molecular signature in collagenous ligands. Others detect a variety of motifs relating to pathogens in addition to cellular stress, attesting to the opportunistic versatility of LRC receptors.
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Affiliation(s)
- John Trowsdale
- Department of Pathology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Des C Jones
- Department of Pathology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Alexander D Barrow
- Department of Pathology and Immunology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
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19
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Mehrian-Shai R, Yalon M, Moshe I, Barshack I, Nass D, Jacob J, Dor C, Reichardt JKV, Constantini S, Toren A. Identification of genomic aberrations in hemangioblastoma by droplet digital PCR and SNP microarray highlights novel candidate genes and pathways for pathogenesis. BMC Genomics 2016; 17:56. [PMID: 26768750 PMCID: PMC4712606 DOI: 10.1186/s12864-016-2370-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/19/2015] [Accepted: 01/06/2016] [Indexed: 02/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Background The genetic mechanisms underlying hemangioblastoma development are still largely unknown. We used high-resolution single nucleotide polymorphism microarrays and droplet digital PCR analysis to detect copy number variations (CNVs) in total of 45 hemangioblastoma tumors. Results We identified 94 CNVs with a median of 18 CNVs per sample. The most frequently gained regions were on chromosomes 1 (p36.32) and 7 (p11.2). These regions contain the EGFR and PRDM16 genes. Recurrent losses were located at chromosome 12 (q24.13), which includes the gene PTPN11. Conclusions Our findings provide the first high-resolution genome-wide view of chromosomal changes in hemangioblastoma and identify 23 candidate genes: EGFR, PRDM16, PTPN11, HOXD11, HOXD13, FLT3, PTCH, FGFR1, FOXP1, GPC3, HOXC13, HOXC11, MKL1, CHEK2, IRF4, GPHN, IKZF1, RB1, HOXA9, and micro RNA, such as hsa-mir-196a-2 for hemangioblastoma pathogenesis. Furthermore, our data implicate that cell proliferation and angiogenesis promoting pathways may be involved in the molecular pathogenesis of hemangioblastoma.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ruty Mehrian-Shai
- Pediatric Hemato-Oncology, Edmond and Lilly Safra Children's Hospital and Cancer Research Center, Sheba Medical Center, Tel Hashomer affiliated to the Sackler School of Medicine, Tel-Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel.
| | - Michal Yalon
- Pediatric Hemato-Oncology, Edmond and Lilly Safra Children's Hospital and Cancer Research Center, Sheba Medical Center, Tel Hashomer affiliated to the Sackler School of Medicine, Tel-Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel.
| | - Itai Moshe
- Pediatric Hemato-Oncology, Edmond and Lilly Safra Children's Hospital and Cancer Research Center, Sheba Medical Center, Tel Hashomer affiliated to the Sackler School of Medicine, Tel-Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel.
| | - Iris Barshack
- Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel. .,Institute of Pathology, Sheba Medical Center, Tel Hashomer, Israel.
| | - Dvorah Nass
- Institute of Pathology, Sheba Medical Center, Tel Hashomer, Israel.
| | - Jasmine Jacob
- Pediatric Hemato-Oncology, Edmond and Lilly Safra Children's Hospital and Cancer Research Center, Sheba Medical Center, Tel Hashomer affiliated to the Sackler School of Medicine, Tel-Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel.
| | - Chen Dor
- Pediatric Hemato-Oncology, Edmond and Lilly Safra Children's Hospital and Cancer Research Center, Sheba Medical Center, Tel Hashomer affiliated to the Sackler School of Medicine, Tel-Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel.
| | - Juergen K V Reichardt
- Division of Tropical Health and Medicine, James Cook University, Townsville, QLD, Australia.
| | - Shlomi Constantini
- Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel. .,Department of Pediatric Neurosurgery, Dana Children's Hospital, Tel-Aviv-Sourasky Medical Center, Tel-Aviv, Israel.
| | - Amos Toren
- Pediatric Hemato-Oncology, Edmond and Lilly Safra Children's Hospital and Cancer Research Center, Sheba Medical Center, Tel Hashomer affiliated to the Sackler School of Medicine, Tel-Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel. .,Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel.
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20
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Kadam S, Vuong TD, Qiu D, Meinhardt CG, Song L, Deshmukh R, Patil G, Wan J, Valliyodan B, Scaboo AM, Shannon JG, Nguyen HT. Genomic-assisted phylogenetic analysis and marker development for next generation soybean cyst nematode resistance breeding. PLANT SCIENCE : AN INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL PLANT BIOLOGY 2016; 242:342-350. [PMID: 26566850 DOI: 10.1016/j.plantsci.2015.08.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 50] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/02/2015] [Revised: 08/20/2015] [Accepted: 08/22/2015] [Indexed: 05/02/2023]
Abstract
Soybean cyst nematode (SCN, Heterodera glycines Ichinohe) is a serious soybean pest. The use of resistant cultivars is an effective approach for preventing yield loss. In this study, 19,652 publicly available soybean accessions that were previously genotyped with the SoySNP50K iSelect BeadChip were used to evaluate the phylogenetic diversity of SCN resistance genes Rhg1 and Rhg4 in an attempt to identify novel sources of resistance. The sequence information of soybean lines was utilized to develop KASPar (KBioscience Competitive Allele-Specific PCR) assays from single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of Rhg1, Rhg4, and other novel quantitative trait loci (QTL). These markers were used to genotype a diverse set of 95 soybean germplasm lines and three recombinant inbred line (RIL) populations. SNP markers from the Rhg1 gene were able to differentiate copy number variation (CNV), such as resistant-high copy (PI 88788-type), low copy (Peking-type), and susceptible-single copy (Williams 82) numbers. Similarly, markers for the Rhg4 gene were able to detect Peking-type (resistance) genotypes. The phylogenetic information of SCN resistance loci from a large set of soybean accessions and the gene/QTL specific markers that were developed in this study will accelerate SCN resistance breeding programs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Suhas Kadam
- Division of Plant Sciences and National Center for Soybean Biotechnology (NCSB), University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65211, USA.
| | - Tri D Vuong
- Division of Plant Sciences and National Center for Soybean Biotechnology (NCSB), University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65211, USA.
| | - Dan Qiu
- Division of Plant Sciences and National Center for Soybean Biotechnology (NCSB), University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65211, USA.
| | - Clinton G Meinhardt
- Division of Plant Sciences and National Center for Soybean Biotechnology (NCSB), University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65211, USA.
| | - Li Song
- Division of Plant Sciences and National Center for Soybean Biotechnology (NCSB), University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65211, USA.
| | - Rupesh Deshmukh
- Division of Plant Sciences and National Center for Soybean Biotechnology (NCSB), University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65211, USA.
| | - Gunvant Patil
- Division of Plant Sciences and National Center for Soybean Biotechnology (NCSB), University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65211, USA.
| | - Jinrong Wan
- Division of Plant Sciences and National Center for Soybean Biotechnology (NCSB), University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65211, USA.
| | - Babu Valliyodan
- Division of Plant Sciences and National Center for Soybean Biotechnology (NCSB), University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65211, USA.
| | - Andrew M Scaboo
- Division of Plant Sciences and National Center for Soybean Biotechnology (NCSB), University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65211, USA.
| | - J Grover Shannon
- Division of Plant Sciences and NCSB, University of Missouri, Portageville, MO 63873, USA.
| | - Henry T Nguyen
- Division of Plant Sciences and National Center for Soybean Biotechnology (NCSB), University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65211, USA.
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Nazari M, Mahmoudi M, Rahmani F, Akhlaghi M, Beigy M, Azarian M, Shamsian E, Akhtari M, Mansouri R. Association of Killer Cell Immunoglobulin- Like Receptor Genes in Iranian Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis. PLoS One 2015; 10:e0143757. [PMID: 26658904 PMCID: PMC4687638 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0143757] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/09/2015] [Accepted: 11/09/2015] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Objectives Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic inflammatory disorder characterized by persistent synovitis, ultimately leading to cartilage and bone degeneration. Natural Killer cells and CD28 null T-cells are suspected as role players in RA pathogenesis. These cells are similar in feature and function, as they both exert their cytotoxic effect via Killer Cell Immunoglobulin- Like Receptors (KIR) on their surface. KIR genes have either an inhibitory or activating effect depending on their intracytoplasmic structure. Herein we genotyped 16 KIR genes, 3 pseudo genes and 6 HLA class І genes as their corresponding ligands in RA patients and control subjects. Methods In this case-control study, KIR and HLA genes were genotyped in 400 RA patients and 372 matched healthy controls using sequence-specific primers (SSP-PCR). Differences in the frequency of genes and haplotypes were determined by χ² test. Results KIR2DL2, 2DL5a, 2DL5b and activating KIR: KIR2DS5 and 3DS1 were all protective against RA. KIR2DL5 removal from a full Inhibitory KIR haplotype converted the mild protection (OR = 0.56) to a powerful predisposition to RA (OR = 16.47). Inhibitory haplotype No. 7 comprising KIR2DL5 in the absence of KIR2DL1 and KIR2DL3 confers a 14-fold protective effect against RA. Conclusion Individuals carrying the inhibitory KIR haplotype No. 6 have a high potential risk for developing RA.
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Affiliation(s)
- Masoumeh Nazari
- Immunology Department, Shahid Sadoughi University of Medical Sciences (International Campus), Yazd, Iran
- Rheumatology Research Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Mahdi Mahmoudi
- Rheumatology Research Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
- * E-mail: (MM); (RM)
| | - Farzaneh Rahmani
- Rheumatology Research Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
- Students’ Scientific Research Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
- Rheumatology Research Center, Shariati Hospital, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Masoomeh Akhlaghi
- Rheumatology Research Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Maani Beigy
- Rheumatology Research Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
- Students’ Scientific Research Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
- Rheumatology Research Center, Shariati Hospital, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Maryam Azarian
- Rheumatology Research Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Elmira Shamsian
- Rheumatology Research Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Maryam Akhtari
- Rheumatology Research Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Reza Mansouri
- Immunology Department, Shahid Sadoughi University of Medical Sciences (International Campus), Yazd, Iran
- Immunology Department, Shahid Sadoughi University of Medical Sciences, Yazd, Iran
- * E-mail: (MM); (RM)
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22
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Hoff AM, Alagaratnam S, Zhao S, Bruun J, Andrews PW, Lothe RA, Skotheim RI. Identification of Novel Fusion Genes in Testicular Germ Cell Tumors. Cancer Res 2015; 76:108-16. [PMID: 26659575 DOI: 10.1158/0008-5472.can-15-1790] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/01/2015] [Accepted: 10/01/2015] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Testicular germ cell tumors (TGCT) are the most frequently diagnosed solid tumors in young men ages 15 to 44 years. Embryonal carcinomas (EC) comprise a subset of TGCTs that exhibit pluripotent characteristics similar to embryonic stem (ES) cells, but the genetic drivers underlying malignant transformation of ECs are unknown. To elucidate the abnormal genetic events potentially contributing to TGCT malignancy, such as the existence of fusion genes or aberrant fusion transcript expression, we performed RNA sequencing of EC cell lines and their nonmalignant ES cell line counterparts. We identified eight novel fusion transcripts and one gene with alternative promoter usage, ETV6. Four out of nine transcripts were found recurrently expressed in an extended panel of primary TGCTs and additional EC cell lines, but not in normal parenchyma of the testis, implying tumor-specific expression. Two of the recurrent transcripts involved an intrachromosomal fusion between RCC1 and HENMT1 located 80 Mbp apart and an interchromosomal fusion between RCC1 and ABHD12B. RCC1-ABHD12B and the ETV6 transcript variant were found to be preferentially expressed in the more undifferentiated TGCT subtypes. In vitro differentiation of the NTERA2 EC cell line resulted in significantly reduced expression of both fusion transcripts involving RCC1 and the ETV6 transcript variant, indicating that they are markers of pluripotency in a malignant setting. In conclusion, we identified eight novel fusion transcripts that, to our knowledge, are the first fusion genes described in TGCT and may therefore potentially serve as genomic biomarkers of malignant progression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andreas M Hoff
- Department of Molecular Oncology, Institute for Cancer Research, Oslo University Hospital-Norwegian Radium Hospital, Oslo, Norway. Centre for Cancer Biomedicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Sharmini Alagaratnam
- Department of Molecular Oncology, Institute for Cancer Research, Oslo University Hospital-Norwegian Radium Hospital, Oslo, Norway. Centre for Cancer Biomedicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Sen Zhao
- Department of Molecular Oncology, Institute for Cancer Research, Oslo University Hospital-Norwegian Radium Hospital, Oslo, Norway. Centre for Cancer Biomedicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Jarle Bruun
- Department of Molecular Oncology, Institute for Cancer Research, Oslo University Hospital-Norwegian Radium Hospital, Oslo, Norway. Centre for Cancer Biomedicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Peter W Andrews
- Department of Biomedical Science, University of Sheffield, Western Bank, Sheffield, United Kingdom. Centre for Stem Cell Biology, University of Sheffield, Western Bank, Sheffield, United Kingdom
| | - Ragnhild A Lothe
- Department of Molecular Oncology, Institute for Cancer Research, Oslo University Hospital-Norwegian Radium Hospital, Oslo, Norway. Centre for Cancer Biomedicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Rolf I Skotheim
- Department of Molecular Oncology, Institute for Cancer Research, Oslo University Hospital-Norwegian Radium Hospital, Oslo, Norway. Centre for Cancer Biomedicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway.
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Lund HL, Hughesman CB, McNeil K, Clemens S, Hocken K, Pettersson R, Karsan A, Foster LJ, Haynes C. Initial diagnosis of chronic myelogenous leukemia based on quantification of M-BCR status using droplet digital PCR. Anal Bioanal Chem 2015; 408:1079-94. [DOI: 10.1007/s00216-015-9204-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/23/2015] [Revised: 11/11/2015] [Accepted: 11/18/2015] [Indexed: 01/25/2023]
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Abstract
Large population studies of immune system genes are essential for characterizing their role in diseases, including autoimmune conditions. Of key interest are a group of genes encoding the killer cell immunoglobulin-like receptors (KIRs), which have known and hypothesized roles in autoimmune diseases, resistance to viruses, reproductive conditions, and cancer. These genes are highly polymorphic, which makes typing expensive and time consuming. Consequently, despite their importance, KIRs have been little studied in large cohorts. Statistical imputation methods developed for other complex loci (e.g., human leukocyte antigen [HLA]) on the basis of SNP data provide an inexpensive high-throughput alternative to direct laboratory typing of these loci and have enabled important findings and insights for many diseases. We present KIR∗IMP, a method for imputation of KIR copy number. We show that KIR∗IMP is highly accurate and thus allows the study of KIRs in large cohorts and enables detailed investigation of the role of KIRs in human disease.
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25
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Abstract
Hundreds of copy number variants are complex and multi-allelic, in that they have many structural alleles and have rearranged multiple times in the ancestors who contributed chromosomes to current humans. Not only are the relationships of these multi-allelic CNVs (mCNVs) to phenotypes generally unknown, but many mCNVs have not yet been described at the basic levels—alleles, allele frequencies, structural features—that support genetic investigation. To date, most reported disease associations to these variants have been ascertained through candidate gene studies. However, only a few associations have reached the level of acceptance defined by durable replications in many cohorts. This likely stems from longstanding challenges in making precise molecular measurements of the alleles individuals have at these loci. However, approaches for mCNV analysis are improving quickly, and some of the unique characteristics of mCNVs may assist future association studies. Their various structural alleles are likely to have different magnitudes of effect, creating a natural allelic series of growing phenotypic impact and giving investigators a set of natural predictions and testable hypotheses about the extent to which each allele of an mCNV predisposes to a phenotype. Also, mCNVs’ low-to-modest correlation to individual single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) may make it easier to distinguish between mCNVs and nearby SNPs as the drivers of an association signal, and perhaps, make it possible to preliminarily screen candidate loci, or the entire genome, for the many mCNV–disease relationships that remain to be discovered.
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White TB, McCoy AM, Streva VA, Fenrich J, Deininger PL. A droplet digital PCR detection method for rare L1 insertions in tumors. Mob DNA 2014; 5:30. [PMID: 25598847 PMCID: PMC4297411 DOI: 10.1186/s13100-014-0030-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/31/2014] [Accepted: 11/19/2014] [Indexed: 01/17/2023] Open
Abstract
Background The active human mobile element, long interspersed element 1 (L1) currently populates human genomes in excess of 500,000 copies per haploid genome. Through its mobility via a process called target primed reverse transcription (TPRT), L1 mobilization has resulted in over 100 de novo cases of human disease and has recently been associated with various cancer types. Large advances in high-throughput sequencing (HTS) technology have allowed for an increased understanding of the role of L1 in human cancer; however, researchers are still limited by the ability to validate potentially rare L1 insertion events detected by HTS that may occur in only a small fraction of tumor cells. Additionally, HTS detection of rare events varies greatly as a function of read depth, and new tools for de novo element discovery are needed to fill in gaps created by HTS. Results We have employed droplet digital PCR (ddPCR) to detect rare L1 loci in mosaic human genomes. Our assay allows for the detection of L1 insertions as rare as one cell in every 10,000. Conclusions ddPCR represents a robust method to be used alongside HTS techniques for detecting, validating and quantitating rare L1 insertion events in tumors and other tissues. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13100-014-0030-4) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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Affiliation(s)
- Travis B White
- Tulane Cancer Center, 1430 Tulane Avenue, New Orleans, LA 70112 USA
| | - Adam M McCoy
- Bio-Rad Laboratories, 750 Alfred Nobel Drive, Hercules, CA 94547 USA.,Present Address: Eureka Genomics, 2000 Alfred Nobel Drive, Hercules, CA 94547 USA
| | - Vincent A Streva
- Tulane Cancer Center, 1430 Tulane Avenue, New Orleans, LA 70112 USA.,Present Address: Division of Infectious Diseases, Boston Children's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, 300 Longwood Avenue, Boston, MA 02115 USA
| | - Joshua Fenrich
- Bio-Rad Laboratories, 750 Alfred Nobel Drive, Hercules, CA 94547 USA
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27
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Multiplex, Quantitative, Reverse Transcription PCR Detection of Influenza Viruses Using Droplet Microfluidic Technology. MICROMACHINES 2014. [DOI: 10.3390/mi6010063] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/22/2023]
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28
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Bell AJ, Gallagher A, Mottram T, Lake A, Kane EV, Lightfoot T, Roman E, Jarrett RF. Germ-line transmitted, chromosomally integrated HHV-6 and classical Hodgkin lymphoma. PLoS One 2014; 9:e112642. [PMID: 25384040 PMCID: PMC4226568 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0112642] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2014] [Accepted: 10/09/2014] [Indexed: 12/05/2022] Open
Abstract
A unique feature of both human herpesvirus 6A and B (HHV-6A and B) among human herpesviruses is their ability to integrate into chromosomal telomeres. In some individuals integrated viral genomes are present in the germ-line and result in the vertical transmission of HHV-6; however, little is known about the disease associations of germ-line transmitted, chromosomally integrated HHV-6 (ciHHV-6). Recent publications suggest that HHV-6 is associated with classical Hodgkin lymphoma (cHL). Here we examine the prevalence of ciHHV-6 in 936 cases of cHL and 563 controls by screening with a duplex TaqMan assay and confirming with droplet digital PCR. ciHHV-6 was detected in 10/563 (1.8%) controls and in all but one individual the virus was HHV-6B. Amongst cases 16/936 (1.7%) harboured ciHHV-6, thus demonstrating no association between ciHHV-6 and risk of cHL.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adam J. Bell
- MRC – University of Glasgow Centre for Virus Research, Glasgow, United Kingdom
- * E-mail:
| | - Alice Gallagher
- MRC – University of Glasgow Centre for Virus Research, Glasgow, United Kingdom
| | - Timothy Mottram
- MRC – University of Glasgow Centre for Virus Research, Glasgow, United Kingdom
| | - Annette Lake
- MRC – University of Glasgow Centre for Virus Research, Glasgow, United Kingdom
| | - Eleanor V. Kane
- Epidemiology and Cancer Statistics Group, Department of Health Sciences, University of York, York, United Kingdom
| | - Tracy Lightfoot
- Epidemiology and Cancer Statistics Group, Department of Health Sciences, University of York, York, United Kingdom
| | - Eve Roman
- Epidemiology and Cancer Statistics Group, Department of Health Sciences, University of York, York, United Kingdom
| | - Ruth F. Jarrett
- MRC – University of Glasgow Centre for Virus Research, Glasgow, United Kingdom
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29
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Huggett JF, Cowen S, Foy CA. Considerations for digital PCR as an accurate molecular diagnostic tool. Clin Chem 2014; 61:79-88. [PMID: 25338683 DOI: 10.1373/clinchem.2014.221366] [Citation(s) in RCA: 294] [Impact Index Per Article: 29.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Digital PCR (dPCR) is an increasingly popular manifestation of PCR that offers a number of unique advantages when applied to preclinical research, particularly when used to detect rare mutations and in the precise quantification of nucleic acids. As is common with many new research methods, the application of dPCR to potential clinical scenarios is also being increasingly described. CONTENT This review addresses some of the factors that need to be considered in the application of dPCR. Compared to real-time quantitative PCR (qPCR), dPCR clearly has the potential to offer more sensitive and considerably more reproducible clinical methods that could lend themselves to diagnostic, prognostic, and predictive tests. But for this to be realized the technology will need to be further developed to reduce cost and simplify application. Concomitantly the preclinical research will need be reported with a comprehensive understanding of the associated errors. dPCR benefits from a far more predictable variance than qPCR but is as susceptible to upstream errors associated with factors like sampling and extraction. dPCR can also suffer systematic bias, particularly leading to underestimation, and internal positive controls are likely to be as important for dPCR as they are for qPCR, especially when reporting the absence of a sequence. SUMMARY In this review we highlight some of the considerations that may be needed when applying dPCR and discuss sources of error. The factors discussed here aim to assist in the translation of dPCR to diagnostic, predictive, or prognostic applications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jim F Huggett
- LGC, Teddington, UK; Research Department of Infection, Division of Infection and Immunity, UCL, London, UK.
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